


First Things First

by prompt_fills



Category: Football RPF
Genre: Drabble, Drabble Sequence, First Kiss, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, cressiweek2k17
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-01
Updated: 2017-10-01
Packaged: 2019-01-07 13:41:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12234006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prompt_fills/pseuds/prompt_fills
Summary: The first words you say to your soulmate… You know how it goes. Everybody knows.So why doesn’t Cristiano have Leo’s words when Leo ended up with his?10+7 scenes of 100 words.





	First Things First

**Author's Note:**

> The first words you said to me  
> are now inked to my skin  
> and you don’t even know  
> how much it hurts  
> that you see me watching you  
> but never look back.

****

**…**

On a warm, albeit windy night, Leo meets his soulmate. At first it goes like it does in the movies. They are introduced, their hands touch in a handshake and Leo’s skin flares up with the words his soulmate says to him.

 _I know who you are,_ slowly settles into Leo’s skin and everything is vibrant and joyful and amazing for about five seconds before Cristiano lets go of his hand and moves on to greet other people, the flashy smile never faltering.

Crushed, Leo gapes at the level of ease by which he is ignored by his own soulmate.

 

****

**…**

His face is red, his skin is still tingling where the words appeared and he can barely focus on anything else. His absentmindedness doesn’t go unnoticed. After earning a series of curious stares, Leo does his best to keep it under the wraps.

He can’t conjure up any real smiles, though. Meeting his soulmate is something too crucial to his life and nothing prepared for him how _empty_ he would feel.

New bonds were supposed to be beautiful and full of love.

He can’t imagine the future bringing anything positive if his soulmate refuses to be a part of it.

 

****

**…**

He is a hopeless romantic, Leo figures, because it isn’t until he’s back at his hotel room that he realizes he kept hoping Cristiano would come back to him at any point during the event and whisk him away. Despite how the initial meeting went, Leo kept expecting it to work out in the end.

It hurts that Cristiano didn’t even let Leo see the words he must have on his skin. _I might have heard of you, too._

Leo stares at the ceiling, blinking back the angry tears. Until the last moment, he didn’t want to admit his defeat.

 

****

**…**

Given how many sleepless nights Leo spends worrying about it, the next time they meet is underwhelming.

The press likes them to be seated close together and Cristiano seems happy to oblige. He’s acting like none of the imprinting ever happened and Leo quickly switches from marvelling at Cristiano’s composure to hating him for it.

He doesn’t utter a single word to Cristiano; he can’t even look directly at him without wanting to grab and shake him.

The closest interaction they have is Cristiano shooting him a puzzled look, like he’s   
confused by Leo’s attitude. Like Leo should know better.

 

****

**…**

They meet later that day, and Cristiano has the audacity to try striking up a conversation.

Leo’s anger raises quick and strong, and he has to stop himself from causing a scene. Cristiano at least recognizes the hostile expression on Leo’s face and holds up his hands, placating. He walks away, that darn grin still in place.

Cristiano’s sleeves fall down a bit at the gesture, revealing two narrow strips of unmarked skin on his wrists.

Leo’s eyes go wide but before he can react, Cristiano disappears into the crowd, exactly like Leo wanted him to.

Understandably, Leo freaks out.

 

****

**…**

“What the actual fuck?” Leo says when he manages to catch up with Cristiano. He grabs his elbow and yanks until Cristiano is facing him.

He needs to get a proper look because the thought of Cristiano not having the words is alarming. He grabs Cristiano’s cuffs and pulls up his sleeves and sure enough, there _are_ words on Cristiano’s wrist.

Cristiano gasps and tries to wrench his hand away from Leo but it’s too late, Leo saw the words.

He feels a bubble of hysterical laughter coming up because he couldn’t have worded it better.

_What the actual fuck?_

 

****

**…**

Cristiano is staring down at Leo, lips parted, eyes wide. He is clutching his wrist to his chest. “No.”

Leo snorts. “You don’t get to chose.”

“What did you do to me?” Cristiano says and he backs away from Leo.

“I didn’t do anything,” Leo says pointedly. “It’s just your words.”

“But that’s not the first thing you’ve said to me,” Cristiano objects.

“Why would you assume it’s me? Did you always have those words or have they appeared just right now? It’s not that unique thing to say.”

“Yeah, it could have been anyone,” Cristiano says without sounding convinced.

 

****

**…**

Cristiano makes a show of keeping his sleeves rolled a little up so that the cameras can catch every angle of his unmarked wrists.

When Leo happens to see it in the news, he confronts Cristiano the first change he gets.

“This is the first thing you said to me,” Leo says. He undoes the tape around his wrist and shows the words to Cristiano.

“I don’t remember that.”

“Why would you, you didn’t get my words in return,” Leo says. He waits for Cristiano to correct him, to say he did have the words, but Cristiano doesn’t say anything.

 

****

**…**

It’s Cristiano who seeks him out next. He marches right up to Leo and when Leo tries to disappear, he glares, grabs Leo’s elbow and drags him to a secluded spot.

“Say something to me,” Cristiano barks.

Leo frees his elbow and crosses his arms. He raises an eyebrow and keeps silent.

“Go on,” Cristiano says, tugging at his shirt to reveal the pristine wrists. “Tell me _anything_.”

“How about, fuck off?”

A wry smile appears on Cristiano’s face. “That would do nicely.”

Leo watches half fascinated and half horrified as the sentence he’s just said forms on Cristiano’s wrist.

 

****

**…**

“It never stays,” Cristiano explains. “I honestly didn’t notice the first time and it was gone by the next morning. What did you say to me anyway? When I first met you.”

“What do you mean it doesn’t stay?” Leo asks, dazed.

“It comes off, it melts away, it dissolves into nothing. I don’t know what’s wrong with it but it reacts to you. It’s always the first thing you say to me when we meet.”

Cristiano is giddy, a blinding smile on his face, and Leo wonders what alternate reality he’s fallen into.

“Does that still makes us soulmates?”

 

****

**…**

“Of course we’re soulmates,” Cristiano reassures him.

Leo has been doubting that since the day they met and Cristiano senses his hesitation.

“What else would that make us? I get your words and you got mine,” he tells Leo. 

“But the words never stay, you said so yourself,” Leo mutters, avoiding Cristiano’s gaze.

Cristiano places one hand on his cheek. “As long as you talk to me, they always come back. Every day it’s something else. Every day it’s me and you.”

“You just like having something extra,” Leo mumbles.

“True,” Cristiano laughs, unapologetic. “The variety will be pretty cool.” 

 

****

**…**

“I’m not coming up with a different compliment each day just to stroke your ego,” Leo warns him.

Cristiano chuckles. “I know.”

Cristiano’s fingers are warm on Leo’s cheek and Leo leans his head into the caress, looking up, trying to phantom the expression on Cristiano’s face.

“I want to kiss you.”

Warm lips brush against Leo’s and Leo parts his lips, gasping, mostly in surprise that the moment he’s dreamed of since Cristiano’s words appeared on his skin is finally here.

Cristiano uses it to his advantage, kissing Leo’s lower lip, slipping in his tongue to slide against Leo’s.

 

****

**…**

“I need to go,” Cristiano says. He doesn’t get up from the bed.

“When can I see you again?” Leo asks, wishing his voice didn’t sound so small.

Cristiano squeezes his hand, leaving soft kisses on his neck before tilting his head and kissing Leo goodbye. “I’ll come find you,” Cristiano promises.

Leo sneaks his hands underneath Cristiano’s shirt, rolling it up and stroking the skin.

“They’ll wonder where I am,” Cristiano says.

“Let them wonder.”

Cristiano groans, rolling them over so that he’s straddling Leo’s hips.

Leo smirks, arching his back. “They can wait.”

“They can wait,” Cristiano echoes.

 

****

**…**

It’s nearly midnight when Cristiano finally finds him. Leo opens his mouth to grumble about it but Cristiano leans down, pressing a kiss to Leo’s jaw, then to his lips to silence him. It’s a pretty effective method.

Leo smiles into the kiss, fingers gripping Cristiano’s shirt. Cristiano deepens the kiss and Leo closes his eyes, moaning softly, only pulling away when he needs more air to breathe.

Cristiano places his forefinger on Leo’s lips. “No words tonight,” he tells Leo.

Leo nods, stealing a glance at Cristiano’s hand. There is no mark today. The wrist looks naked and vulnerable.

 

****

**…**

Leo gently trails his fingers over Cristiano’s arm. He exhales and whispers, “Love you.” Mesmerized, he watches the two words appear on Cristiano’s skin.

Cristiano stirs in his sleep but doesn’t wake.

The midnight comes and goes and when Leo next looks at Cristiano, he realizes the words are gone. It’s a new day.

“I love you,” Leo says and the words quickly form on the underside of Cristiano’s wrist.

Leo wants to say it each morning. He wouldn’t even need to see it, he could call Cristiano, say the words and be content simply _knowing_ the mark is there.

 

****

**…**

They need to go and Leo waits until the last possible minute to wake Cristiano up.

“Get up, you sleepyhead!”

Cristiano groans, sitting up and yawning. “Good morning to you too,” he grumbles, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. “You could have said something nicer,” he complains but he leans close to Leo and presses a quick kiss on his cheek.

Leo grins, pointing at Cristiano’s wrist. “Apparently, you don’t need to be awake to get the words.”

Leo hears Cristiano’s breath hitch when he reads the words. Cristiano buries his nose in Leo’s hair. “That’s perfect.”

 

****

**…**

Leo takes Cristiano’s arm before he can slip through the door. They intertwine their fingers and Leo strokes his thumb over Cristiano’s words.

“I was thinking,” Leo says as nonchalantly as he can, “that if I tell you this first thing each morning, the words would stay the same and people wouldn’t ask you stupid questions.”

Cristiano’s voice cracks. “Would you do that for me?”

Leo bites his lip, trying to suppress the smile. “Every day.”

“So the words could stay the same forever,” Cirstiano says quietly.

Leo nods, kissing Cristiano’s wrist.

He already knows how he’s going to propose.


End file.
